Background Obesity in late adolescence has been associated with an increased risk of multiple sclerosis (MS); however, it is not known if body size in childhood is associated with MS risk. Methods Using a prospective design we examined whether body mass index (BMI) at ages 7-13 was associated with MS risk among 303,998 individuals in the Copenhagen School Health Records Register (CSHRR).. Linking the CSHRR with the Danish MS registry yielded 774 MS cases (501 girls, 273 boys). We used Cox proportional hazards models, to estimate the hazard ratios (HR) and 95% confidence intervals. Results Among girls, at each age 7-13, a 1-unit increase in BMI z-score was associated with an increased risk of MS (HRage 7=1.20, 95%CI: 1.10-1.30; HRage 13=1.18, 95%CI: 1.08-1.28). Girls who were ≥95th percentile for BMI had a 1.61-1.95-fold increased risk of MS as compared to girls <85th percentile. The associations were attenuated in boys. The pooled HR for a 1-unit increase in BMI z-score was at age 7 was 1.17, 95%CI: 1.09-1.26, and at age 13, 1.15, 95%CI: 1.07-1.24. Conclusion Having a high BMI in early life is a risk factor for MS, but the mechanisms underlying the association remain to be elucidated.

In this study, the authors examined whether concurrent associations between adolescent outcomes and disagreements with mothers, fathers, and best friends vary as a function of perceived relationship quality. Participants were 469 11-to 18-year-old youths from a culturally diverse community. Negative qualities of parent-adolescent and friend relationships were linked to adjustment problems (aggression, anxiety and depression, delinquency, and withdrawal). Positive qualities of parentadolescent relationships were linked to school grades and adjustment problems. Nonlinear associations between conflict and adolescent outcomes were moderated by negative qualities of relationships such that increases in conflict from low to moderate levels were linked to (a) higher school grades for adolescents in better but not poorer quality relationships and (b) greater delinquency and withdrawal for adolescents in poorer but not better quality relationships. Keywords adolescent conflict; mother-adolescent relationship; father-adolescent relationship; friendship Interpersonal conflict can be aversive. For this reason, contention is assumed to be antithetical to individual wellbeing. But is conflict necessarily pernicious? Many scholars believe that the valence of conflict depends on the family in which it arises: Conflict in supportive relationships is thought to be constructive and beneficial, whereas conflict in unsupportive relationships is considered destructive and detrimental. Agreement about this intuitively appealing assumption obscures the fact that it has received scant empirical attention. The present investigation was designed to address this proposition by exploring whether associations between indices of adolescent well-being and self-reports of disagreements with mothers, fathers, and best friends vary as a function of the perceived quality of the relationship in which the disagreement arises.Conflict is an essential form of communication. Over the course of a typical day, adolescents report three or four conflicts with parents and one or two conflicts with friends (Laursen & Collins, 1994). Conflicts signal the significance of topics and relationships, they provide a means for expressing concern and dissatisfaction, and they serve as a vehicle for individual growth and relationship transformation (Sillars, Canary, & Tafoya, 2004). Conflict, defined as overt behavioral opposition, is typically operationalized in terms of disagreement or incompatible behaviors. This designation has the advantage of disentangling conflict from competition and aggression and avoiding problems that arise when conflict is conflated with negative affect. Our goal was to describe the role conflict plays in shaping adolescent outcomes. NIH-PA Author ManuscriptNIH-PA Author Manuscript NIH-PA Author ManuscriptWe defined conflict as disagreement so as to capture all instances of opposition; we focused on conflict with parents and friends because most adolescents report these relationships to be their closest, most influential, and most...

The incidence of MS has doubled in women, most pronounced with late onset, and has only modestly increased in men. Lifestyle changes in the female population that could include fewer childbirths, increased occurrence of obesity, and increased cigarette consumption may have a role.